North Carolina Writers’ Network Fall Conference

The 2025 North Carolina Writers’ Network (NCWN) Fall Conference will be held from November 7 to November 9 at the Holiday Inn Resort on Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina. The conference features classes in poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction, as well as conversations and panel discussions on the craft and business of writing, open mic sessions, faculty readings, and one-on-one manuscript critiques with agents or editors. The faculty includes poets Anna Lena Phillips Bell, Melissa Crowe, Gabrielle Brant Freeman, and Chris Tonelli; fiction writers Clyde Edgerton, Therese Anne Fowler, and Nathan Gower; fiction and creative nonfiction writer Hannah Dela Cruz Abrams; and creative nonfiction writers Georgann Eubanks, David Gessner, and Michael Ramos. Participating publishing professionals include agent Lucy Cleland (Frances Goldin Literary Agency), editors Michelle Donahue (Ecotone) and Robin Miura (Blair), and publisher Emily Louise Smith (Lookout Books). The cost of the full conference is $495 ($345 for NCWN members). General registration is available through October 31. To apply for a manuscript critique, submit up to 20 pages of poetry or prose with an additional $175 by October 24. A limited number of full and partial scholarships are available; to apply, submit a curriculum vitae and a statement of intent along with the standard application materials by October 17. Lodging is available at the conference hotel at a nightly rate of $189. Visit the website for more information.

Accessibility accommodations include accessible sidewalks, pathways, and doorways; accessible restrooms and event spaces; accessible parking; closed captioning for online programming; and ASL interpretation and conference materials in Braille or large print (with advance request by October 24). Contact the NCWN staff at mail@ncwriters.org for additional accessibility details.